Is there nothing new in aftermarket acoustic pickups the last decade?

[tfarny]

.

When I was looking to mod my acoustic for an amplifier .. there were the lick 'n stick style pad piezo pickups that go under the sound board and the under saddle ribbon/wire style that required shaving down your bridge. I'd used one of those wire styles under a Tele bridge of a project guitar to get acoustic tones so I knew they worked. They could be had for five or ten dollars back then but needed some sort of pre-amp that was five dollars and a five dollar battery and then the acoustic guitar style amp.

I'm all electric guitar and just have the acoustic for banging around on so I ended up making a strip of wood that fit behind the sound hole to suspend a regular Strat single coil as close to the neck as possible then ran that direct to a strap-pin jack. I only need one guitar amp for both electric and 'acoustic' guitars. If I want to sound more like an acoustic guitar I twist knobs on pedals and amp, otherwise it sounds more like a Strat -- which was one of those items that taught me there is no such thing as 'tone wood'.

I'd say to just get a lick 'n stick pad pickup for the electric guitar, a five dollar pre-amp, and spend your money on your acoustic amp rather than trying to spread the budget equally around all the little bits.

.

It's really easy to get something close enough for rock n roll. But if you really want an acoustic to sound on stage like it does in your living room, especially at drummer / bass player volumes, it does get tricky.

 

[tfarny]

Ah now THAT is interesting. Expensive, but interesting lol. Thanks for sharing!

Audio Sprockets | ToneDexter II - Preliminary Product Info

ToneDexter has been redesigned & will be available Spring 23. It restores the rich body tone of your acoustic instrument to the piezo pickup.

audiosprockets.com

Voiceprint DI Acoustic Guitar Impulse Response Pedal — LR Baggs

The product of nearly 3 years of intensive research and collaboration with a team of PhDs, LR Baggs is thrilled to introduce Voiceprint DI, the next breakthrough chapter in acoustic amplification.

www.lrbaggs.com

IR Convolvers - Acoustic IR

IR convolvers are FX pedals/rack/audio plugins that will perform the signal processing. There are many kinds: The fixed IR pedals are sold (...)

acousticir.free.fr

FREE Custom IRs for Your Guitar and Its Pickup (Acoustic Guitar IR Impulse Response) - Page 16 - The Acoustic Guitar Forum

Page 16- FREE Custom IRs for Your Guitar and Its Pickup (Acoustic Guitar IR Impulse Response) Acoustic Amplification

www.acousticguitarforum.com

 

[Chud]

Audio Sprockets | ToneDexter II - Preliminary Product Info

ToneDexter has been redesigned & will be available Spring 23. It restores the rich body tone of your acoustic instrument to the piezo pickup.

audiosprockets.com

Voiceprint DI Acoustic Guitar Impulse Response Pedal — LR Baggs

The product of nearly 3 years of intensive research and collaboration with a team of PhDs, LR Baggs is thrilled to introduce Voiceprint DI, the next breakthrough chapter in acoustic amplification.

www.lrbaggs.com

IR Convolvers - Acoustic IR

IR convolvers are FX pedals/rack/audio plugins that will perform the signal processing. There are many kinds: The fixed IR pedals are sold (...)

acousticir.free.fr

FREE Custom IRs for Your Guitar and Its Pickup (Acoustic Guitar IR Impulse Response) - Page 16 - The Acoustic Guitar Forum

Page 16- FREE Custom IRs for Your Guitar and Its Pickup (Acoustic Guitar IR Impulse Response) Acoustic Amplification

www.acousticguitarforum.com

I was taking a look at the Baggs Voiceprint, pretty nifty looking and sounding piece of kit!

 

[loco gringo]

I was taking a look at the Baggs Voiceprint, pretty nifty looking and sounding piece of kit!

The ToneDexter was designed by the same guy that has the Ultra Tonic pickup I posted. They are separate companies. They are both great pieces of gear.

 

[Chud]

The ToneDexter was designed by the same guy that has the Ultra Tonic pickup I posted. They are separate companies. They are both great pieces of gear.

EDIT: Ah, cool. The ToneDexter seems pretty cool as well, but doesn't look like the new version will be available for a bit. Both the TD and the LRB are a lot more than I really need, but then again there's a lot of guitar stuff I have that I don't really need, so...

 

[Chiogtr4x]

I recently had to travel for work and was going to do a quick performance while at my destination, and ended up renting an acoustic/electric guitar from GC because I don't have a gig ready acoustic for air travel at the moment. I have an 000 sized Yamaha that I've meant to get ready for a few years, but of course that which shall not be named made it unnecessary for a while. Now that's of course changed, and I'm back on the track of getting the Yammie ready to fly and play.

I've been looking around the usual sites for acoustic pickups, and it doesn't seem like there's anything new or more exciting than the LR Baggs Anthem I installed in a 12 string about a decade ago. I'm not looking to spend the cash for a Sunrise, or even another full Anthem for this guitar, but looking for something a little more than just an UST.

Anything anyone would recommend (that's not a sound hole pickup) under $200 like the Anthem SL or Lyric that might be interesting? Those are my top 2 right now, but they were around when I bought the Anthem so just seeing if maybe there's something I'm overlooking that's come out since.

Thanks!

This was on my Google feed just now,
Maybe a good idea?

Review: Mojotone’s Quiet Coil NC-1 Acoustic Guitar Pickup Avoids Common Tonal Pitfalls | Acoustic Guitar

Doug Young tests the Mojotone Quiet Coil NC-1 magnetic soundhole pickup, a lightweight option for acoustic guitarists seeking natural, balanced amplified tone onstage or in the studio.

acousticguitar.com

 

[KC]

The K&K in my 000-18 improved considerably when I started running it through a Redeye DI instead of straight into the board. It sounds pretty good now, or at least good enough.

 

[Chud]

This was on my Google feed just now,
Maybe a good idea?

Review: Mojotone’s Quiet Coil NC-1 Acoustic Guitar Pickup Avoids Common Tonal Pitfalls | Acoustic Guitar

Doug Young tests the Mojotone Quiet Coil NC-1 magnetic soundhole pickup, a lightweight option for acoustic guitarists seeking natural, balanced amplified tone onstage or in the studio.

acousticguitar.com

That's interesting for sure. I've had a few soundhole pickups over the years (passive magnetic, and mostly on the cheaper end of the spectrum ~$50-100) and they've done the job but never great. I'd love to be able to demo one of those before plunking down almost $200 on it. This video pretty decently shows it performing a bit more naturally than the soundhole pickups I remember using, not sure I'd say it's a huge leap forward, but definitely better.

The K&K in my 000-18 improved considerably when I started running it through a Redeye DI instead of straight into the board. It sounds pretty good now, or at least good enough.

This is where I tend to fall back toward the Anthem, Anthem SL, or Lyric as not only being way ahead out of the gate on capturing and reproducing the natural sound of the guitar better, but also being simpler and more cost effective not requiring a DI or preamp to make it sound "pretty good, or at least good enough" lol

I've been going back and forth on giving one of the K&K clones a shot at about $50, but have read comments on several of them that the piezo pads are larger than the K&K's and may not fit well on the underside of my 000 sized guitar. That and some anecdotal evidence that several of the clones being larger means more mass to move and thus less sensitivity/output. And then of course the cheapies or the K&K likely would still require a DI or preamp to be able to hold their own in a band situation, so then we're back to one of the Anthems (or the Lyric) as the solution that a) I already know and love, and b) doesn't require any additional hardware to keep up with a band.

All that said, the LR Baggs Voiceprint has piqued my interest and may end up in my bag (pun intended) at some point as a way to improve the plugged in tone of all of my acoustics.

I think I'm going to give the Anthem SL a shot in the little Yamaha. I tend to mix the full Anthem in the 12 string mostly toward the mic anyway, so I don't think I'll miss the ability to blend the two all that much.

Thanks everyone for the input, particularly on the new stuff!

 

[Lenderman_k]

I put a JJB in my martin d15. I think it sounds pretty good but really havent had a good chance to really put it through its paces in a live setting.

 

[mojavedesert]

I have a Gibson p90 in my cutaway Gibson guitar. You add the pickup you want, they have different pickup rings you add to the mount. I had a tele bridge pickup in there for a while which was also cool. Move the pickup to any guitar. I got tired of dim sounding strings with the under-saddle pickup. I needed something I could count on.
http://www.luthiertool.com/pickup-cradle.html

 

[Chud]

That’s a pretty creative solution if you want one guitar for acoustic and electric. I can’t imagine it sounds much like an acoustic plugged in though. Kind of like the “lick n stick” solution someone posted earlier. Lol

The Anthem SL arrived a bit ago. I’ll post up an install and demo thread once done. Maybe I’ll do a round of string changes on all of the acoustics and compare contrast the different guitars and pickups.

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

It's really easy to get something close enough for rock n roll. But if you really want an acoustic to sound on stage like it does in your living room, especially at drummer / bass player volumes, it does get tricky.

The saving grace: If the band is too loud for a guitar mic to be practical, there's no point in trying to preserve the tone of a folk guitar, anyway. It'll be lost, no matter how good your rig is. Your lows and highs will be washed out. The bloom of rosewood will disappear. The twang of mahogany will be flattened.

And complex undertones will turn to mud. That's why brighter guitars like Taylors and Ovations are so popular for recording.

Even a cheap soundhole pickup will sound good (and feedback-free!) when you're playing in a loud band. It's the precious mids you'll need and want, and it's the precious mids you'll get.

In fact, when I'm recording and multi-tracking a lot of instruments on a tune that has an acoustic rhythm guitar, I'll usually dial away all the highs and lows to find a spot in the mix for the mids.

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

. . . The Anthem SL arrived a bit ago. I’ll post up an install and demo thread once done. Maybe I’ll do a round of string changes on all of the acoustics and compare contrast the different guitars and pickups.

Standing by!

 

[24 track]

sorry Chud I've only used the Dean Markley sound hole units I like them and use them with a tube mic pre they dont sound too bad , but its not what you specified you need

BTW Best of the season to you!

 

[black_doug]

sorry Chud I've only used the Dean Markley sound hole units I like them and use them with a tube mic pre they dont sound too bad , but its not what you specified you need

BTW Best of the season to you!

A tube mic pre improves the sound of my K&K Pure Mini also.

 

[rand z]

I've been using a Martin 000C 16RGTE on solo gigs for over 8 years.

It came with the Fishman Aura system; blending microphone emulation/options with the under-saddle pickup.

It has served me well.

The only other possibility that I've slightly explored (a few times), was adding an Audio Technica condenser mic on a short tripod in close proximity at the 12th fret/soundhole.

The mic is not really necessary at the majority of the venues that I play.

But, it does add a nice ambient touch to the sound of the guitar, mixed in/along with the Aura System.

It's the only thing that I could add to the other suggestions, made here.

imo.

 

[Chud]

sorry Chud I've only used the Dean Markley sound hole units I like them and use them with a tube mic pre they dont sound too bad , but its not what you specified you need

BTW Best of the season to you!

Thanks Paris! Been a busy bee here, check out my newest build thread in the Bad Dog for more context! Lol

 

[uriah1]

Getting a K K upgrade to my D18, already have one in J45.
Love the Redeye DI and also have a soulmate
and tonebone pre z